Application levels of service over a network

ABSTRACT

Methods, systems, devices, and software are disclosed for providing application levels of service over a network. Embodiments of the invention maintain a list of registered applications (or application providers) that have registered with a network resources provider. Customers of the network resources provider may authenticate some or all of the registered applications, indicating a desire to allow traffic relating to those applications over their access networks. Customers may further set application levels of service with respect to those authenticated applications. Certain embodiments may use the registrations, authentications, service level settings, and/or other related information to generate application service level protocol data. This ASLP data may then be used to make data handling determinations for managing the flow of network traffic according to agreed service levels at the application level.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the invention are related to the provision oftelecommunication services, and in particular, to the provision ofapplication levels of service over a network.

Many typical networks, including the Internet, may be configured as“best effort” networks. In a best effort network, each packet ofinformation may be given substantially equal priority, such that thenetwork may make a best effort to transmit each packet, regardless ofthe application from which the packet originates. This may allow anetwork to remain neutral to and compatible with any potentialapplications with which it may be used.

One result of using “best effort” protocols may be that applications mayeffectively “hog” limited bandwidth resources by sending and/orreceiving large numbers of packets over the network. This may starveother applications of bandwidth, thereby preventing those otherapplications from running as desired. For example, voice over internetprotocol (“VoIP”) services may not run reliably while bandwidth-hoggingapplications (e.g., massively multiplayer online games, certain filesharing applications, etc.) are running over the same network.

Some network components (e.g., routers, residential gateways, andmodems) attempt to provide certain applications minimum levels ofservice by allowing port-level configurations. In certain components,specific ports may be designated to send and/or receive certain types ofpackets and to prioritize those packets, such that a minimum level ofservice is maintained for those packets where possible. For example, alogical port on a router may be configured to send and receive VoIPpackets with a very high priority. In this way, the router may attemptto establish a minimum level of service to VoIP packets, therebyindirectly attempting to establish a minimum level of service to anyapplications that send and/or receive VoIP packets.

While port-level configuration may help provide levels of service tocertain types of packets, its effectiveness may be limited. Onepotential limit to the effectiveness of port-level configuration is thatusers may wish to give different levels of service to differentapplications using similar types of packets. If the port is configuredonly to detect that type of packet, there may be no way for the port todiscriminate at the application level.

Another potential limit to the effectiveness of port-level configurationis that applications may easily “spoof” a network to exploit theconfiguration without the consent of a user. For example, massivelymultiplayer online games may use large amounts of bandwidth, even whilethe game does not appear to be running, to execute heuristics to predictfuture player movements, to update the game with networked informationfrom other players and systems, to preload graphics and/or audio, etc.The game may then query a router configuration, determine that VoIPpackets are being given high priority, and configure its packets to looklike those high-priority VoIP packets. In this way, game traffic maylook to the network like VoIP traffic, potentially starving actual VoIPtraffic of bandwidth.

As such, there may be a general need in the art for providing reliableminimum application levels of service to network users.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Among other things, embodiments of the invention include methods,systems, and apparatuses for providing reliable minimum applicationlevels of service to network users.

In one embodiment, the invention maintains a list of registeredapplications (or application providers) that have registered with anetwork resources provider. Customers of the network resources providermay authenticate some or all of the registered applications, indicatinga desire to allow traffic relating to those applications over theiraccess networks. Customers may further set application levels of servicewith respect to those authenticated applications. Certain embodimentsmay use the registrations, authentications, service level settings,and/or other related information to generate application service levelprotocol (“ASLP”) data. Using the ASLP information may allow the networkresources provider, the customer, and/or other parties to manage networkresources and provide certain application levels of service, whilelimiting the ability of unauthenticated applications from spoofing thenetwork.

One set of embodiments includes a method for providing an applicationlevel of service over a network. The method includes receiving networktraffic at a network routing location controlled by a service provider,wherein the network traffic originates from an application, comprisesprotocol data, and is configured to be sent over the network to anintended consumer, the intended consumer being a consumer of networkresources provided by the service provider; deriving the application andthe intended consumer from the network traffic as a function of theprotocol data; determining whether an application service levelrelationship exists between the application and the intended consumer;and handling the network traffic at the network routing location as afunction of the results of the determining step.

Another set of embodiments includes another method for providing anapplication level of service over a network. The method includesproviding a list of registered applications to a user of networkresources; receiving a request from the user to accommodate anapplication level of service for network traffic from a designatedregistered application; generating, if the request is proper, anapplication service level agreement based on the request between theuser and the designated registered application; receiving networktraffic from the network at a first network location; determiningwhether the network traffic is governed by the application service levelagreement; and if the network traffic is governed by the applicationservice level agreement: formulating application routing data as afunction of the application service level agreement and an applicationservice level protocol; and routing the network traffic over the networkfrom the first network location to a second network location accordingto the application routing data.

Yet another set of embodiments includes a system for providing anapplication level of service over a network. The system includes areceiver unit, operable to receive network traffic from the network,wherein the network traffic originates from at least one of a set ofregistered applications and is destined for an intended user; and anetwork management unit, operable to determine whether the networktraffic is governed by an application service level relationship betweenthe at least one registered application and the intended user, formulateapplication routing data as a function of the application service levelrelationship and an application service level protocol, and route thenetwork traffic over the network at least partially as a function of theapplication routing data.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A further understanding of the nature and advantages of the presentinvention may be realized by reference to the figures, which aredescribed in the remaining portion of the specification. In the figures,like reference numerals are used throughout several figures to refer tosimilar components. In some instances, a reference numeral may have anassociated sub-label consisting of a lower-case letter to denote one ofmultiple similar components. When reference is made to a referencenumeral without specification of a sub-label, the reference is intendedto refer to all such multiple similar components.

FIG. 1 shows a simplified data flow diagram for providing applicationlevels of service (“ALS”) over a network, according to variousembodiments of the invention.

FIG. 2 shows another data flow diagram for providing ALS over a network,according to various embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 3 shows an illustrative embodiment of a registration process,according to various embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 4 shows an illustrative embodiment of an authentication process,according to various embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 5 shows an illustrative embodiment of a customer-initiated servicelevel settings maintenance process, according to various embodiments ofthe invention.

FIG. 6 shows an illustrative embodiment of a network traffic managementprocess, according to various embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 7 shows a simplified system diagram of an illustrative system forproviding ALS over a network, according to various embodiments of theinvention.

FIG. 8 shows a simplified system diagram of an illustrative system forproviding ALS over a managed network using a number of distributed ASLPhandler units, according to various embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 9 shows a simplified system diagram of an illustrative system forproviding ALS over a network having at least one managed networkelement, according to various embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 10 shows a simplified system diagram of an illustrative system forproviding ALS over a network having multiple network elements managed bymultiple parties, according to various embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 11 shows an illustrative computational system for providing ALSsupport in a network environment, according to various embodiments ofthe invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the invention provide reliable minimum application levelsof service to network users. Various embodiments provide methods,systems, and apparatuses for providing such services through applicationauthentication protocols. Using application authentication protocols mayallow participants to reliably handle levels of service at theapplication or sub-application level.

In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, numerousspecific details are set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the present invention. It will be apparent, however, toone skilled in the art that the present invention may be practicedwithout some of these specific details. For example, while variousfeatures are ascribed to particular embodiments, it should beappreciated that the features described with respect to one embodimentmay be incorporated with other embodiments as well. By the same token,however, no single feature or features of any described embodimentshould be considered essential to the invention, as other embodiments ofthe invention may omit such features. Further, while various embodimentsare described with reference to the Internet, embodiments of theinvention may be implemented in any network.

Many typical networks, including the Internet, may be configured as“best effort” networks. In a best effort network, each packet ofinformation may be given substantially equal priority, such that thenetwork may make a best effort to transmit each packet, regardless ofthe application from which the packet originates. On one hand, this mayallow a network to remain neutral to and compatible with any potentialapplications with which it may be used. In general, much Internet policyhas been concerned with maintaining this so-called network neutralityover the public Internet.

On the other hand, some types of information may be more sensitive thanothers to network resource limitations, like limited bandwidth anddelays. For example, quality of service (“QoS”) for some voice overinternet protocol (“VoIP”) applications may be impacted by networkcharacteristics, like latency, jitter, and packet loss. In certain ofthese applications, where information is communicated in multipledirections (e.g, in a two-way communication), the impacts may beexperienced on both the uplink and downlink channels of the networklink. As such, ensuring levels of service (e.g., QoS) for certainapplications may be difficult in a best effort network like theInternet.

Moreover, some modern applications have found ways to exploit the besteffort nature of the Internet and other networks to effectively “hog”limited bandwidth resources. In some cases bandwidth may be hoggedsimply by sending and/or receiving large numbers of packets over anetwork. This may starve other applications of bandwidth, therebypreventing those other applications from running as desired. Forexample, voice over internet protocol (“VoIP”) services may not runreliably while bandwidth-hogging applications (e.g., massivelymultiplayer online games, certain file sharing applications, etc.) arerunning over the same network.

Some network components (e.g., routers, residential gateways, andmodems) attempt to provide certain applications minimum levels ofservice by allowing port-level configurations. For example, a logicalport on a router may be configured to send and receive packetsdesignated by a VoIP header with a very high priority. In this way, therouter may attempt to tilt levels of service in favor of VoIP packets,at least from the router to the next network switch or router.

While port-level configuration may help provide levels of service tocertain types of packets, its effectiveness may be limited. Onepotential limit to the effectiveness of port-level configuration is thatusers may wish to give different levels of service to differentapplications using similar types of packets. If the port is configuredonly to detect that type of packet, there may be no way for the port todiscriminate at the application level.

Another potential limit to the effectiveness of port-level configurationis that applications may easily “spoof” a network to exploit theconfiguration without the consent of a user. For example, a massivelymultiplayer online game may desire to use large amounts of bandwidth,even while the game does not appear to be running, to execute heuristicsto predict future player movements, to update the game with networkedinformation from other players and systems, to preload graphics and/oraudio, etc. The game may query a router configuration (e.g., by locallyor remotely detecting port settings), determine that packets with VoIPheaders are being given high priority, and configure its packets toinclude VoIP information in the headers so as to look like thosehigh-priority VoIP packets. In this way, game traffic may appear to beVoIP traffic from the router's standpoint, potentially starving actualVoIP traffic of bandwidth. As such, it may be desirable to providelevels of service for application-level network traffic, while limitingthe ability of applications to spoof the network.

It will be appreciated that the phrase “application level of service”and its acronym “ALS” may be used herein to refer generally to any typeof network service level metric. For example, ALS may refer to bandwidthreservation, quality of service (“QoS”), class of service (“CoS”), orterms of service (“ToS”). Further, providing ALS over a network mayrefer to providing minimum, maximum, adjustable, specific, or any othertype of levels of service to applications. Even further, providing ALSmay include providing levels of security along with the various otherALS functions. For example, bandwidth reservation may include securelyreserving bandwidth by application.

It will be further appreciated that, while various embodiments areillustrated with application data flowing from an application to anintended end user, the same or similar inventive concepts describedherein are applicable to any other data flows throughout a network. Forexample, similar functionality may be applicable to handling applicantdata sent from an end user to an application provider, from one networkcomponent to another network component (e.g., one aggregator to anotheraggregator), etc. Further, it may be desirable to handlemultidirectional data flows for certain applications (e.g., bothupstream and downstream data traffic for a VoIP call). As such,descriptions of data flows from applications to end users should not beconstrued as limiting the scope of the invention.

Among other things, embodiments of the invention provide methods,systems, apparatuses, and software for handling ALS over a network,while minimizing network spoofing and/or other network management anddesign issues. FIG. 1 shows a simplified data flow diagram for providingALS over a network, according to various embodiments of the invention.The data flow 100 includes a registration process 300, an authenticationprocess 400, and network management processes 600.

In some embodiments, the data flow 100 begins when an application 102goes through a registration process 300 to become a registeredapplication. In certain embodiments, the registration process 300 isprovided by, controlled, and/or performed with a network resourcesprovider 104. The application 102 may be any type of application thatcommunicates application data (e.g., streaming data, real-time data,files, cached data, etc.) to an end user over a network. For example,the application 102 may relate to email, online gaming, VoIP, filesharing, e-commerce, Internet protocol television (“IPTV”), or any othernetwork usage.

Some time after the application 102 completes the registration process300, a customer 106 may perform an authentication process 400 toauthenticate the application 300. In certain embodiments, theregistration process 300 is provided by, controlled, and/or performedwith a network resources provider 104. The customer 106 may be acustomer of the network resources provider 104 (e.g., the networkresources provider 104 may provide network services to the customer106). By completing the authentication process 400, the application 102may become authenticated. This may indicate to the network (e.g., to thenetwork resources provider 104) that the customer 106 desires to receivenetwork traffic from the application 102 at a certain ALS (e.g., greaterthan some minimum QoS). This network traffic may then be treated asregistered authenticated data 108 as it flows through all or a portionof the network. It will be appreciated that some or all of theregistration and/or authentication processes may include security. Forexample, it may be desirable to provide secure registration ofapplications or secure authentication of securely registeredapplications.

In some embodiments, the network resources provider 104 constantlyperforms network management processes 600. These network managementprocesses 600 may include handling (e.g., routing) of various types ofnetwork traffic. In certain embodiments, the network managementprocesses 600 include processes for handling the registeredauthenticated data 108 according to various conditions. The conditionsmay include information from the registration and/or authenticationprocesses, network characteristics, time of day, multiple applicationscompeting for network resources, etc.

By handling the registered authenticated data 108 with specific networkmanagement processes 600, it may be possible to prevent unregistered orunauthenticated applications 102 from spoofing the network. For example,even a registered application 102 may be unable to send data to acustomer 106 at a certain ALS without first being authenticated by thecustomer 106. As such, it will be appreciated that the data flow 100 mayprovide customers 106 with the capability to set ALS for desiredapplications 102, while limiting the ability of undesired applications102 to spoof the network.

FIG. 2 shows a more detailed embodiments of a data flow diagram forproviding application levels of service over a network, according tovarious embodiments of the invention. As in FIG. 1, the data flow 200includes a registration process 300, an authentication process 400, andnetwork management processes 600. Dashed lines may indicate illustrativeparties to an agreement, and solid lined with no arrowheads may indicateillustrative data usage by a process.

Embodiments of the data flow 200 begins when an application 102completes a registration process 300 to become a registered application212. In certain embodiments, the registration process 300 is providedby, controlled, and/or performed with a network resources provider 104.In various embodiments, the registration process 300 may be performed atthe application level, application type level (e.g., voicecommunications, file sharing, online gaming, IPTV, etc.), applicationprovider level, sub-application level (e.g., the heuristics or videopre-loading modules of an online gaming application), or any otheruseful level. For example, an application provider may register some orall of its applications, or an application may register some or all itssub-applications.

FIG. 3 shows an illustrative embodiment of a registration process 300,according to various embodiments of the invention. Embodiments of theregistration process 300 begin at block 304 when an application requeststo become a registered application. In some embodiments, the applicationprovider submits a registration request to a network resources provider,for example, electronically or by mail. In certain embodiments, aregistration network portal is provided to allow applications orapplication providers to register electronically over the network (e.g.,the Internet).

The registration request received at block 304 may succeed or fail atblock 308. Where the registration fails, some embodiments of theregistration process 300 notify the application of the registrationfailure at block 312. In some cases, the registration failure may resultfrom a denial of the registration request. For example, the networkresources provider may determine that the application tends to overuseor misuse certain network resources, or that it would be undesirable orunprofitable to register the application for some reason (e.g., forcompetitive reasons). In other cases, the failure may relate to networkconstraints or failures, account issues, or other reasons.

Where the registration succeeds, the application may be approved as aregistered application. In some embodiments, the registered applicationis added to a list of registered applications in block 316. The list ofregistered applications may be maintained, for example, in a datastorage unit (e.g., a server). In certain embodiments, the list ofregistered applications is maintained by the network resources provider.

In certain embodiments, the registration process 300 continues at block320 with updating or generating a service level agreement (“SLA”). Insome embodiments, the SLA is generated to control one or more aspects ofthe relationship between the application provider and a third partyservice provider, like the network resources provider. For example, theapplication may register with a party responsible for a number of accessnetwork (e.g., “last mile”) connections between end customers and afirst network access point. In one embodiment, the registration requestreceived at block 304 is not approved at block 308 until the terms of anSLA have been agreed to by its parties (e.g., the application providerand the network resources provider).

Returning to FIG. 2, it will now be appreciated that embodiments of theregistration process 300 (e.g., the registration process 300 of FIG. 3)may allow the application 102 to become a registered application 212. Itwill be further appreciated that embodiments of the registration process300 may generate or update an SLA 214 between the now-registeredapplication (or the application provider) and the network resourcesprovider 104. In this way, the registration process 300 may be used toeffectively certify the application 102 as a trusted application.

Even where the application 102 is a registered application 212, it maybe desirable for the customer 106 to be able to set a certain ALS and/orother service level settings relating to the registered application 212.In some embodiments of the data flow 200, the customer 106 engages in anauthentication process 400 to authenticate the registered application212 as an authenticated application 222. FIG. 4 shows an illustrativeembodiment of an authentication process 400, according to variousembodiments of the invention.

Some embodiments of the authentication process 400 begin at block 404 byauthenticating the customer. In certain embodiments, the authenticationprocess 400 receives login information from the customer, allowing thecustomer access to certain customer account information. For example,the authentication process 400 may be provided via a network portal(e.g., over the Internet), which requires an account identifier (e.g., auser name) and a password.

Once the customer is authenticated, embodiments of the authenticationprocess 400 provide the customer with a list of registered applicationsat block 408. It will be appreciated that the list may be provided inany useful way. In one embodiment, the list is provided as a table, thetable showing all the available registered applications and associatedrelevant information (e.g., whether the application has been previouslyauthenticated, a description of the application, a description of theapplications network usage, etc.). In another embodiment, the customeris provided with the capability to process (e.g., search, sort, filter,etc.) the list, such that records from the list are provided asprocessed results. For example, the customer may search for allhome-office-related applications that have not been registered, sortedby customer rating. In still another embodiment, preset configurationsmay be offered as choices for the customer, allowing the customer tomake macro-level ALS decisions. For example, the customer may choose a“home-office” profile that has been predefined (e.g., by the customer,the network resources provider, an application provider, the customer'semployer, etc.) to simultaneously authenticate multiple applicationswith particular ALSs and other service level settings.

In some embodiments, the authentication process 400 continues at block412 by receiving a customer request to authenticate one or moreapplications. It will be appreciated that the request may be received ina number of ways according to the invention. In one embodiment, therequest is received electronically via the provided network portal. Inother embodiments, the request is received electronically by some otherway (e.g., email) or by mail. Further, the receipt of the request mayrelate to the form in which the list of registered applications wasprovided in block 408. For example, where the customer is provided withmacro-level options, the request may be received as a macro-levelrequest (e.g., to authenticate multiple applications in one request).

In some embodiments, authentication request in block 412 results inupdating or generating an application service level agreement (“ASLA”)between the customer and the application or application provider atblock 416. The creation of the ASLA may include generating a set of ASLAterms and conditions or other elements of the agreement. In someembodiments, the ASLA includes minimal information, for example, theparties to the agreement. In other embodiments, the ASLA furtherincludes certain service level settings relating to the application(e.g., service level settings). In one example, the service levelsettings indicate that traffic relating to the customer's VoIP providershould receive the highest priority of all network traffic on thecustomer's access network at all times of day. In another example, theservice level settings indicate that traffic relating to the customer'sVoIP provider should be guaranteed a minimum QoS at all times.

Some embodiments of the ASLA provide an individualized ASLA for eachcustomer-application pair. In other embodiments, the ASLA is implementedas one or more records in a relational database. For example, a datarecord may exist for each customer, including attributes relating towhich applications have been authenticated by the customer, otherservice level settings, etc. Alternately, a data record may exist foreach registered application, including attributes relating to whichcustomers have authenticated the application. It will be appreciatedthat many types of SLAs and ASLAs are possible according to theinvention. In fact, various embodiments of the invention may support anytype of multilateral agreement process by which a customer mayauthenticate an application. In some embodiments, the agreement arebilateral (e.g., through an ASLA); in other embodiments, the agreementsare trilateral (e.g., by combining the third-party registration and SLAprocess with the ASLA); and in still other embodiments, various SLAs andASLAs are combined to create multilateral agreements (e.g., by combiningan SLA between a two network service providers with an SLA between oneof the network service providers and an application provider and furtherwith an ASLA between the application provider and a customer.

In some embodiments of the authentication process 400, other servicelevel settings are received at block 420. For example, the customer mayhave service level settings which are or are not related to specificASLAs. Some or all of the information from the ASLA and/or other servicelevel settings may be used in block 424 to generate or updateapplication service level protocol (“ASLP”) information. It will beappreciated that network traffic may generally be configured accordingto one or more protocols (e.g., the TCP/IP protocol). These protocolsmay essentially handle (e.g., control) the communication of informationbetween nodes of the network by defining and interpreting certain rulesunderstood by those nodes. The rules may relate, for example, to syntax,encryption, synchronization, error correction, etc. The ASLP refers to aprotocol for providing application levels of service over a network.

It will be appreciated that the term “protocol” as used herein isintended to generally describe any set of data useful for facilitatingdata handling over a network. In some embodiments, the ASLP iscompatible with standard network protocols. In one embodiment, the ASLPis compatible with the TCP/IP protocol, a standard Internet protocol.The TCP/IP protocol may generally include a header portion, a dataportion, and a tail portion. The header portion may include space thatis reserved for certain information (e.g., error correction bits), andother space that is open for certain optional information. In theoptional information space, it may be possible to include ASLP bits forhandling application service levels.

In another embodiment, the ASLP bits are incorporated into data portionsof other datagrams. For example, a standard network protocol may includea data portion for communicating application data. Within the dataportion, it may be desirable to insert another datagram. In oneembodiment, the ASLP defines the bit string in the data portion of an IPdatagram. For example, the first twenty-four bits of the data portionmay include bits representing the application provider and/or theintended user.

In yet another embodiment, the ASLP bits may be inferred from networktraffic (e.g., from data signatures within a data packet). For example,techniques, like those used in deep packet inspection, may be used toguess at a likely source application for data traffic on the network.The techniques may, for example, analyze patterns of data looking forpatterns that are characteristic to certain applications, or look forsource-identifying data inserted into the traffic by the application(e.g., for trademark, branding, copyright, tracking, or other reasons).

Returning to FIG. 2, it will now be appreciated that embodiments of theauthentication process 400 (e.g., the authentication process 400 of FIG.4) may allow the registered application 212 to become an authenticatedapplication 222. It will be further appreciated that embodiments of theauthentication process 400 may generate or update an ASLA 224 betweenthe now-authenticated application (or the application provider) and thecustomer 106, generate or update other service level settings 226relating to the customer's network management, and generate or updateASLP 228 information for use in handling network traffic between theapplication 102 and the customer 106. As such, a relationship may now bedefined that effectively certifies the application 102 from thestandpoint of both the customer 106 and the network resources provider104.

Some embodiments of the data flow 200 include a service level settingsmaintenance process 500 that is separate from the authentication process400. Some embodiments of the service level settings maintenance process500 allow the network resources provider 104 to modify service levelsettings 226 for a customer 106. For example, the network resourcesprovider 104 may upgrade certain options, provide differentfunctionality based on account changes, provide different functionalitybased on network infrastructure changes, or modify the service levelsettings 226 of the customer 106 for any other reason. Other embodimentsof the service level settings maintenance process 500 allow the customer106 to access and/or change its own service level settings 226.

FIG. 5 shows an illustrative embodiment of a customer-initiated servicelevel settings maintenance process 500, according to various embodimentsof the invention. It is worth noting that a customer's service levelsettings may be stored and/or implemented in a number of ways. In someembodiments, the service level settings include data stored on a datastorage device that may be queried by one or more components of thenetwork. For example, a DSLAM may query the data storage device todetermine whether the customer has set priorities relating to aparticular application. In other embodiments, the service level settingsmay include physical or virtual settings of network components. Forexample, the service level settings may include port settings for acustomer's home router. In certain of these embodiments, the customerservice level settings can be handled (e.g., updated, modified, etc.)remotely. For example, a network resources provider may control servicelevel settings relating to a customer's DSL modem using an automaticconfiguration server (“ACS”) by transmitting information over the accessnetwork (e.g., TR-069 commands).

Embodiments of the service level settings maintenance process 500 beginat block 504 by authenticating the customer (e.g., in a similar way tothe authentication of the customer in block 404 of FIG. 4. For example,a network portal may be provided for performing the service levelsettings maintenance process 500, which receives a login identifier andpassword to authenticate the customer. In some embodiments, thecustomer's current service level settings are provided to the customerat block 508. In some cases, for example where the customer has nevermodified its service level settings, the service level settings providedto the customer may include default service level settings. In oneembodiment, the default service level settings are set by the networkresources provider. In various embodiments, some service level settingsmay relate to specific ASLAs, while other service level settings may notbe related to specific ASLAs. For example, the customer's service levelsettings may relate to the customer's account (e.g., payment history,account restrictions, content entitlement, maximum bandwidthallocations, etc.), the customer's network characteristics (e.g., ameasured level of latency, traffic, usage, etc.; customer premisesequipment settings and capabilities; customer intranet settings; etc.),the customer's preferences (e.g., what types of applications thecustomer prefers, at what times of day the customer uses them, etc.); orany other useful type of service level setting.

The service level settings maintenance process 500 may then receive arequest from the customer at block 512 to modify its current servicelevel settings. In one example, a customer homeowner may set its servicelevel settings to allocate certain amounts of bandwidth to certain typesof applications at certain times of day. During the homeowner's workday(e.g., from nine o'clock each morning until four o'clock eachafternoon), the service level settings indicate that certain home-officeapplications receive the largest relative bandwidth allocation in theaccess network. From four o'clock until six o'clock each afternoon, whenthe homeowner's children return home from school, their favoritemultiplayer online game receives the largest relative bandwidthallocation in the access network. From six o'clock until midnight eachevening, when the homeowner's family tends to watch television together,traffic from a number of IPTV applications receive the largest relativebandwidth allocation in the access network. At all other times of day,the service level settings provide default bandwidth allocations to allapplications (e.g., the network is treated as a best effort network, ismanaged according to a default or preset profile, or is managed based onsome other heuristic).

In certain embodiments, the request for changes to the service levelsettings received at block 512 is audited at block 516 to determinewhether the request is proper. In one embodiment, the audit analyzes theform of the request to determine whether it may be accuratelyinterpreted by the service level settings maintenance process 500. Inanother embodiment, the content of the request is audited to determinewhether the request is possible according to certain network limitations(e.g., whether a requested bandwidth allocation exceeds the maximumbandwidth available to the customer, certain service level settings areincompatible with other service level settings, etc.). In still anotherembodiment, the content of the request is audited to determine whetherit is compliant with certain account limitations (e.g., only a certainnumber of changes are allowed per day, only certain service levelsettings may be changed, etc.).

When the audit in block 516 fails, some embodiments of the service levelsettings maintenance process 500 notify the customer of the failure inblock 520. When the audit in block 516 succeeds, some embodiments of theservice level settings maintenance process 500 change the customer'sservice level settings in block 524 to reflect the customer's request(e.g., by updating information stored at a storage device or by sendingcommands from an ACS). In certain embodiments, the customer's requestreceived at block 512 may be interpreted and/or modified by the servicelevel settings maintenance process 500 to comply with certainparameters. This interpretation and/or modification of the request maybe in addition to or in lieu of the auditing step at block 516. In oneexample, the service level settings maintenance process 500 parses aplain language request to generate a formatted request that may properlybe audited at block 516 and/or carried out at block 524. In anotherexample, the service level settings maintenance process 500 interprets apattern of service level settings change requests to better generatecertain heuristics.

Returning to FIG. 2, it will now be appreciated that embodiments of theservice level settings maintenance process 500 (e.g., the service levelsettings maintenance process 500 of FIG. 5) may allow the customer 106to maintain its service level settings 226. It will be furtherappreciated that certain embodiments of the ASLA 224, ASLP 228, andservice level settings 226 may share information, be based on oneanother, or be related in any other useful way. In some embodiments ofthe data flow, some or all of the information in the ASLA 224, ASLP 228,and/or service level settings 226 may then be used in managing (e.g.,routing, handling, etc.) network traffic between the application 102 andthe customer 106 (e.g., as managed by the network resources provider104).

FIG. 6 shows an illustrative embodiment of a network traffic managementprocess 600, according to various embodiments of the invention. Whilenetwork management may be constantly occurring in a network, for clarityof description, embodiments of the network traffic management process600 are considered to begin at block 602 when an application 102 beginstransmitting application data to a customer 106 over a network. The datatransmission may include configuring application data to be sent to thecustomer according to certain ASLP standards. In some embodiments,packets of application data are configured to include ASLP information,for example, in each packet's header.

The ASLP information may identify the originating application providerand the intended end customer of the application data. In some cases,the ASLP information may further identify one or more network resourcesproviders (e.g., if that is important for managing data flow, tariffs,and other issues across a network involving multiple resource providerpartners). In other cases, the ASLP information includes other types ofinformation, for example, relating to terms and conditions of the ASLAwith the intended end customer. In certain embodiments, the ASLP definescertain algorithms for generating the ASLP information. For example, theASLP may require certain contents of a bit string, certain bit lengthsfor particular information, certain encryption algorithms, certain errorcorrection algorithms, certain amounts of data redundancy, etc.

At block 604, the network traffic management process 600 receives thenetwork traffic sent in block 602. For example, packets of informationmay be received at a network element or other network node (e.g., aswitch, a DSLAM, a head-end, etc.). The network traffic managementprocess 600 may then determine at block 608 whether the network trafficincludes ASLP information (e.g., if the packet is compatible with theASLP). In some embodiments, if the received traffic does not includeASLP information, the network traffic management process 600 will treatthe traffic in some predetermined or default way at block 624. Forexample, the packet may be given “normal” or “default” priority. Inother embodiments, non-ASLP traffic may be handled differently, forexample, by being blocked, rerouted, tagged, given low priority, etc.

If the network traffic is determined at block 608 to include ASLPinformation, the ASLP information may be parsed, or otherwise processed,from the traffic at block 612. Parsing the ASLP information from thedata packets may allow the network traffic management process 600 tointerpret its contents. For example, the interpretation may reveal theapplication provider from which the data packets originated and theintended customer to which the data packets are destined. In certainembodiments, the determination in block 608 may include a determinationof whether the ASLP information is proper. For example, the ASLPinformation may be incorrect in content or syntax, potentiallypreventing reliable interpretation of the data.

It will be appreciated that the ASLP may be configured such that onlyregistered applications could generate proper ASLP information (e.g.,through encryption keys, etc.). As such, a determination that the ASLPinformation is improper may indicate that the originating applicationprovider is not registered. As a corollary, in some embodiments, adetermination that the ASLP information is proper may indicate that theoriginating application provider is registered.

In some embodiments, the interpreted information is used at block 616 toanalyze what, if any, service level settings and/or agreements are inplace with respect to the originating application provider. One possibleservice level setting includes whether an application is restricted. Incertain embodiments, the network traffic management process 600determines whether the application is a restricted application at block620. In one embodiment, the network traffic management process 600 maydetermine that the originating application provider is not registered.Where the application is not registered, the network traffic managementprocess 600 may treat the traffic in some predetermined or default wayat block 624.

In another embodiment, network resources providers and/or the customersare provided with functionality to block or otherwise restrict trafficfrom certain types of application providers. As such, a determinationthat the application is restricted may require treating theapplication-related traffic in some restricted way. For example, anetwork resource provider may wish to block certain file sharingapplications, either completely, at certain times of day, based oncertain network conditions, after a certain quota of traffic has beenreached, etc. In this and other examples, it may be desirable torestrict the application-related traffic, for example, by attributingpackets with one or more “restricted” tags or priority settings at block636. In certain embodiments, when traffic is identified as originatingfrom a restricted application, the network traffic management process600 logs certain events (e.g., records the restricted application'sattempt to send information to the customer) and/or notifies thecustomer of the traffic at block 640. In one embodiment, notifying thecustomer includes giving the customer the option to remove or modify therestrictions.

In some embodiments of the network traffic management process 600, adetermination is made at block 620 of whether an ASLA is in placebetween the originating application provider and the intended customer.Where no ASLA is in place, the network traffic management process 600may treat the traffic in some predetermined or default way at block 624.In certain embodiments, when no ASLA is in place, the network trafficmanagement process 600 logs certain events (e.g., records the trafficnot under an ASLA) and/or notifies the customer or the originatingapplication provider of the non-ASLA traffic at block 628. In otherembodiments, when no ASLA is in place, the network traffic managementprocess 600 gives the customer the option to enter into an ASLA (i.e.,to authenticate the application) at block 632. Where a proper ASLA is inplace, embodiments of the network traffic management process 600determine the terms and conditions of the ASLA and any other servicelevel settings at block 644, and attribute the traffic accordingly.

Once the ASLP information has been interpreted to determine theappropriate conditions for handling the network traffic, embodiments ofthe network traffic management process 600 then manage the networktraffic according to those determinations in block 648. In someembodiments, the network traffic management process 600 is performed ata network element (e.g., a switch, a DSLAM, a router, etc.) controlledby a network resources provider. In certain of these embodiments, thepacket of information is received at the network element with certainASLP information and routed with different ASLP information. Forexample, an incoming data packet may include ASLP bits implemented as anencrypted bit string. The bit stream may contain information from whichit is possible to verify or reconstruct the application from which thepacket originated, the end customer to whom the packet is intended, anda portion of the data included in the packet. This information may beused, as described above, to determine how the traffic should be handled(e.g., whether an ASLA is in place). Based on the determination, newASLP bits may be generated and incorporated into the data packet,indicating the proper rules for handling the data packet once the packetis received by the next network element (e.g., the customer's modem,residential gateway, or router). It will be appreciated that managingthe traffic according to the ASLP at block 648 may include routing orre-routing data, blocking transmission of data, logging transmission ofdata, altering data, otherwise handling the data, etc.

Returning to FIG. 2, it will now be appreciated that embodiments of thenetwork traffic management process 600 (e.g., the network trafficmanagement process 600 of FIG. 6) may allow the network resourcesprovider 104, or another party, to manage network resources with ALSprovisions. As shown in FIG. 2, the authenticated application 222 maycommunicate data over the network having a first set of ASLP information(e.g., an encrypted bit string in the packet headers designating theoriginating application provider and the intended end customer),designated as ASLP₁ Data 232. The ASLP₁ Data 232 may, at some point inits network transmission, reach a network element (e.g., a networkaccess point or switch) controlled by the network resources provider104. Through the network traffic management process 600, the networkresources provider 104 may interpret the ASLP₁ Data 232, determineappropriate data handling actions according to the ASLP, and generatedata with a second set of ASLP information (e.g., an encrypted bitstring in the packet headers indicating certain data handling commandsfor interpretation by the network element), designated as ASLP₂ Data234. The ASLP₂ Data 234 may then be routed to the intended end customer106, where and as appropriate. The ASLP₁ Data 232 and or the ASLP₂ Data234 may be the registered authenticated data 108 of FIG. 1.

In some embodiments of the data flow 200, a billing management process250 is included to handle various billing functions. In variousembodiments, the billing functions may apply to any or all of themethods of FIGS. 3-6, or other billing relationships. In one embodiment,the billing management process 250 handles billing of applications forregistration and use of the ASLP handling functionality of the data flow200. In another embodiment, the billing management process 250 handlesbilling of customers for authentication of application data and forusing the ASLP handling functionality of the data flow 200. In stillother embodiments, the billing management process 250 handles billing ofother network resources providers for performing ASLP handling functions(e.g., in the form of tariffs for data trafficking and/or shaping,licenses for using ASLP handling functions, maintenance fees forpurchasing ASLP handling components and/or functionality, etc.). It willbe appreciated that many other types of billing arrangements arepossible, some or all of which may be handled by the billing managementprocess 250. For example, other billing functionality may includebilling for customer or application data handling (e.g., storage,retrieval, buffering, caching, processing, etc. of data relating toregistration, authentication, ASLAs, SLAs, service level settings,etc.), billing for data routing (e.g., per packet, per type of packet,per logical pipe allocation, etc.), billing for certain service levels(e.g., types of functions available, number of levels available, typesof guarantees available, etc.), or any other useful billing functions.

It will be appreciated that embodiments of the invention, including theembodiments described with reference to FIGS. 1-6 may be implemented invarious types of systems, apparatuses, and/or software. FIG. 7 shows asimplified system diagram of an illustrative system for providing ALSover a network, according to various embodiments of the invention. Thesystem 700 includes a number of application providers 710 and a numberof end customers 730 communicating application data over a network 720.

According to the illustrated embodiment, one of the applicationproviders 710-1 and one of the end customers 730-1 are parties to one ormore ASLAs 750. The other application providers (720-2-720-n) have noASLA in place with any of the end customers 730. As such, some datatraffic over the network 720 will be ASLP data (i.e., at least a portionof the data communicated from the first application provider 710-1 tothe first end customer 730-1), and other data will not be ASLP data.

In some embodiments, the system 700 further includes a data storage unit740 (e.g., a server), configured to store certain ALS-relatedinformation. In certain embodiments, the data storage unit 740 storesthe ASLA. In other embodiments, the data storage unit 740 also storesother service level information and other information that may be usefulin formulating ASLP data. Information from the data storage unit 740 maybe passed to an ASLP handler unit 760 for use in managing ASLP datatraffic over the network.

In the illustrative embodiment, when data not under an ASLA flowsthrough the network 720, the data may pass as best effort (i.e.,neutral) traffic through some or all of the nodes of the network 720. Ifthe network 720 detects data under an ASLA, however, the ASLP handlerunit 760 may manage the network in an attempt to satisfy the ALSinformation relating to the transmission. For example, the ASLP handlerunit 760 may allocate bandwidth, set priorities, or perform othernetwork management functions according to the ASLA or other servicelevel settings.

FIG. 8 shows a simplified system diagram of an illustrative system forproviding ALS over a managed network using a number of distributed ASLPhandler units, according to various embodiments of the invention. Forclarity, only a single application provider 710 and a single endcustomer 730 are shown. It will be appreciated, however, that in someembodiments, multiple application providers 710 and/or single endcustomers 730 may be connected by the network, and may or may not engagein ASLP data transmissions.

As in FIG. 7, the system 800 is shown with the application provider 710and the end customer 730 communicating application data over a network720. Further, the application provider 710 and the end customer 730 areparties to an ASLA 750. The ASLA, and possibly other information, isstored in a data storage unit 740, which is connected to an ASLP handlerunit 760-1. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 8, the data storageunit 740 is controlled (e.g., owned, operated, managed, etc.) by anetwork resources provider 810. In certain embodiments, the networkresources provider 810 manages all or part of the network. Further, incertain embodiments, the network resources provider 810 is a party tothe ASLA (e.g., directly as a third-party to the ASLA, or indirectly bybeing a party to a separate but interrelated agreement with one or bothof the parties to the ASLA).

In certain embodiments, a second ASLP handler unit 760-2 is located atthe application provider 710 data origination location. The function ofthe second ASLP handler unit 760-2 may be to configure the outgoingapplication data as ASLP data according to the ASLP. It will beappreciated that the second ASLP handler unit 760-2 may be the same ordifferent from the first ASLP handler unit 760-1. For example, whereonly this minimal functionality may be desired, the second ASLP handlerunit 760-2 may be implemented as a software plug-in or other softwareapplication for appropriately formatting data into ASLP data.

In other embodiments, a third ASLP handler unit 760-3 is located at theend customer 730 data receiving location (e.g., the customer premises).The function of the third ASLP handler unit 760-3 may be to interpret orfurther handle incoming application data as ASLP data according to theASLP. Of course, depending on the desired functionality of the thirdASLP handler unit 760-3, the third ASLP handler unit 760-3 may be thesame or different from either or both of the first ASLP handler unit760-1 and the second ASLP handler unit 760-2. For example, the thirdASLP handler unit 760-3 may be incorporated into a router at the endcustomer 730 premises, and may be configured to perform one or moreASLP-related functions, including interpreting ASLP data, handling thefurther transmission of ASLP data within the end customer's 730 localarea network, interpreting tags or alerts, resending ASLP data back tothe network 720, etc.

FIG. 9 shows a simplified system diagram of an illustrative system forproviding ALS over a network having at least one managed networkelement, according to various embodiments of the invention. It will beappreciated that the system 900 of FIG. 9 is substantially similar tothe system 800 of FIG. 8, except in the relationship between the networkresources provider 810 and the network 720. The system 900 includes anetwork element 910 located at the access network of the end customer730. For example, if the end customer 730 is connected to the network720 by a digital subscriber line (“DSL”) connection, the network element910 may be a Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer (“DSLAM”).

In certain embodiments, the network element 910 is controlled by thenetwork resources provider 810 and includes, or has access to, an ASLPhandler unit 760-3. Because a portion of the network 720 is controlledby the network resources provider 810, it may not be necessary for thedata storage unit 740 or the ASLP handler unit 760-3 to be independently(e.g., directly) in communication with the network 720. For example, thenetwork element 910 may operate to handle ASLP data through its owndedicated communication link (e.g., or direct connection) to either orboth of the data storage unit 740 and the ASLP handler unit 760-3.

For example, when ASLP data reaches the network element 910, the ASLPhandler unit 760-3 may interpret the ASLP information. The ASLP handlerunit 760-3 may then use information stored in the data storage unit 740to make a data handling determination. In some cases, after making thedata handling determination, the ASLP handler unit 760-3 may generatenew ASLP data for use by the network element 910. The network element910 may then handle the ASLP data according to the new ASLP data, forexample by routing the data to the end customer 730 according to servicelevel settings associated with the end customer 730 and/or theapplication provider 710.

FIG. 10 shows a simplified system diagram of an illustrative system forproviding ALS over a network having multiple network elements managed bymultiple parties, according to various embodiments of the invention. Asin FIG. 9, the method 1000 of FIG. 10 includes an application provider710 and an end customer 730 connected via a network 720. A first networkelement 910-1, managed by a network resources provider 810, is locatedin the access network of the end customer 730. The first network element910-1 may be operable to use an ASLP handler unit 760-3 and/orinformation from a data store 740 to interpret ASLP data destined for(or in some cases, originating from) the end customer 730.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 10, the network 720 includes anumber of network routing elements 1030 (e.g., switches). In some cases(e.g., depending on the ASLP and/or other protocols being used for datacommunications over the network 720), the various network routingelements 1030 between the application provider 710 and the end customer730 may define a virtual communication link 1020 (e.g., a tunnel). Someor all of the network routing elements 1030 may be controlled by variousentities 1010.

In certain embodiments, the entities are network resources providers,and the network resources provider 810 is one of the entities. Purely byway of example, a first entity 1010-1 may control a second networkelement 910-2, the second network element 910-2 being located in theaccess network of the application provider 710. A second entity 1010-2may control a first network routing element 1030-1 on the backbone ofthe network 720. And a third entity 1010-3 may control a second networkrouting element 1030-2 and a third network routing element 1030-3, bothon the backbone of the network 720.

It will be appreciated that some or all of the ASLP handlingfunctionality may be provided at different network elements, forexample, depending on their respective functions in the network. Forexample, a DSLAM may be connected to an aggregation device, which mayaggregate traffic from the DSLAM and multiple other DSLAMs to betransported over a core network. An edge router may be integrated orseparate from the aggregation device, and a core router may be upstreamfrom the edge router. In some cases, ASLP handling functionality may beprovided by any or all of these devices, depending on the capacity ofvarious transport links. For example, the location of the ASLP handlingfunctionality may be optimal where the likelihood of a trafficbottleneck is highest.

It will be further appreciated that many different types ofrelationships may exist between various parties in the system 1000. Asillustrated, the network resources provider 810 has SLAs 1040 in place,governing relationships with the first entity 1010-1 and the thirdentity 1010-3. The SLAs 1040 may, for example, license those entities(1010-1 and 1010-3) to handle ASLP data, allow for sharing certain typesof information (e.g., logging of certain types of traffic, sharingcustomer service level settings, sharing information regardingagreements with application providers, etc.), grant certainauthorizations to the parties, etc. Of course, other relationships mayexist, other than the ones illustrated in FIG. 10. For example, thesecond entity 1010-2 and the third entity 1010-3 may be parties to anSLA 1040 that does not involve the network resources provider 810, inthe form of a second license, a sub-license, an assignment, apartnership, etc.

In certain embodiments, it is desirable for various network elements 910and/or network routing elements 1030 to have localized ASLP handlingfunctionality, e.g., through local ASLP handling units 760. For example,the second network element 910-2, the second network routing element1030-2, and the third network routing element 1030-3 are all illustratedas having local ASLP handling units 760. This may allow for moreefficient local management of ASLP traffic at various nodes in thenetwork 720.

In one example, the application provider 710 transmits application datato the network 720, destined for the end customer 730. The applicationdata is configured as ASLP data by the first ASLP handler unit 760-1(local to the application provider 710), and routed to the secondnetwork element 910-2 at the edge of its access network. The secondnetwork element 910-2 has a local ASLP handling unit 760-3, which routesthe application data according to the ASLP.

The application data may then be passed to the first network routingelement 1030-1, which has no local ASLP handling capability and no SLA1040 in place with the network resources provider 810. As such, thefirst network routing element 1030-1 may treat the ASLP data as anyother data (e.g., with no priority, as best effort traffic). Theapplication data may continue through the network, flowing through thesecond network routing element 1030-2 and the third network routingelement 1030-3, both of which have local ASLP handling units (760-4 and760-5, respectively). As such, the application data may be handledaccording to the ASLP at those network nodes.

The application data may then reach the first network element 910-1,located at the edge of the access network of the end customer 730. Thefirst network element 910-1 may analyze the ASLP information in the ASLPdata to make an appropriate network traffic management determination.For example, the first network element 910-1 may query the data storageunit 740 to determine what ASLA terms or conditions control therelationship between the application provider 710 and the end customer730, if there are any other relevant service level settings for theaccount of the end customer 730, and any other relevant information.Using this information, the first network element 910-1 may handle theapplication data, for example by routing the data to the end customer730 with the appropriate ALS.

It will be appreciated that the functionality of the various componentsof the system or the performance of various steps of the methods may beimplemented in a number of ways. For example, they may be implemented inhardware, firmware, software, or in any other effective way. Further,they may be implemented as one or more dedicated devices, as one or morecomponents of a larger device, as one or more components of a system,etc. In some embodiments, they are implemented as or in a computationalsystem (e.g., a computer).

97 FIG. 11 shows an illustrative computational system for providing ALSsupport in a network environment, according to various embodiments ofthe invention. The computational system 1100 is shown having hardwareelements that may be electrically coupled via a bus 1126 (or mayotherwise be in communication, as appropriate). The hardware elementsmay include one or more processors 1102, including without limitationone or more general-purpose processors and/or one or morespecial-purpose processors (such as digital signal processing chips,graphics acceleration chips, and/or the like); one or more input devices1104, which can include without limitation a mouse, a keyboard, and/orthe like; and one or more output devices 1106, which can include withoutlimitation a display device, a printer, and/or the like. In someembodiments, an ASLP handling unit 1160-1 is coupled to the bus 1126, oris otherwise accessible by other components of the computational system1100.

The computational system 1100 may further include (and/or be incommunication with) one or more storage devices 1108, which cancomprise, without limitation, local and/or network accessible storageand/or can include, without limitation, a disk drive, a drive array, anoptical storage device, a solid-state storage device such as a randomaccess memory (“RAM”), and/or a read-only memory (“ROM”), which can beprogrammable, flash-updateable, and/or the like.

The computational system 1100 might also include a communicationssubsystem 1114, which can include without limitation a modem, a networkcard (wireless or wired), an infra-red communication device, a wirelesscommunication device and/or chipset (such as a Bluetooth device, an802.11 device, a WiFi device, a WiMax device, cellular communicationfacilities, etc.), and/or the like. The communications subsystem 1114may permit data to be exchanged with a network 1120, and/or any otherdevices described herein. In many embodiments, the computational system1100 will further comprise a working memory 1118, which can include aRAM or ROM device, as described above.

The computational system 1100 also may include software elements, shownas being currently located within the working memory 1118, including anoperating system 1124 and/or other code, such as one or more applicationprograms 1122, which may include computer programs of the invention,and/or may be designed to implement methods of the invention and/orconfigure systems of the invention, as described herein. For example,the application programs 1122 may include functionality to implementsome or all of the aspects of an ASLP handling unit 1160-2.

Merely by way of example, one or more procedures described with respectto the method(s) discussed above might be implemented as code and/orinstructions executable by a computer (and/or a processor within acomputer). A set of these instructions and/or code might be stored on acomputer readable storage medium 1110 b. In some embodiments, thecomputer readable storage medium 1110 b is the storage device(s) 1108described above. In other embodiments, the computer readable storagemedium 1110 b might be incorporated within a computational system, suchas the system 1100. In still other embodiments, the computer readablestorage medium 1110 b might be separate from the computational system(i.e., a removable medium, such as a compact disc, etc.), and/orprovided in an installation package, such that the storage medium can beused to configure a general purpose computer with the instructions/codestored thereon. These instructions might take the form of executablecode, which is executable by the computational system 1100 and/or mighttake the form of source and/or installable code, which, upon compilationand/or installation on the computational system 1100 (e.g., using any ofa variety of generally available compilers, installation programs,compression/decompression utilities, etc.), then takes the form ofexecutable code. In these embodiments, the computer readable storagemedium 1110 b may be read by a computer readable storage media reader1110 a.

In one embodiment, the invention employs the computational system toperform methods of the invention. According to a set of embodiments,some or all of the procedures of such methods are performed by thecomputational system 1100 in response to processor 1102 executing one ormore sequences of one or more instructions (which might be incorporatedinto the operating system 1124 and/or other code, such as an applicationprogram 1122) contained in the working memory 1118. Such instructionsmay be read into the working memory 1118 from another machine-readablemedium, such as one or more of the storage device(s) 1108 (or 1110).Merely by way of example, execution of the sequences of instructionscontained in the working memory 1118 might cause the processor(s) 1102to perform one or more procedures of the methods described herein. Inthis way, the computational system 1100 can be “configured to” or“operable to” perform any number of such procedures or methods.

The terms “machine readable medium” and “computer readable medium,” asused herein, refer to any medium that participates in providing datathat causes a machine to operate in a specific fashion. In an embodimentimplemented using the computational system 1100, variousmachine-readable media might be involved in providing instructions/codeto processor(s) 1102 for execution and/or might be used to store and/orcarry such instructions/code (e.g., as signals). In manyimplementations, a computer readable medium is a physical and/ortangible storage medium. Such a medium may take many forms, includingbut not limited to, non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmissionmedia. Non-volatile media includes, for example, optical or magneticdisks, such as the storage device(s) (1108 or 1110). Volatile mediaincludes, without limitation dynamic memory, such as the working memory1118. Transmission media includes coaxial cables, copper wire, and fiberoptics, including the wires that comprise the bus 1126, as well as thevarious components of the communication subsystem 1114 (and/or the mediaby which the communications subsystem 1114 provides communication withother devices). Hence, transmission media can also take the form ofwaves (including without limitation radio, acoustic and/or light waves,such as those generated during radio-wave and infra-red datacommunications).

Common forms of physical and/or tangible computer readable mediainclude, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, a hard disk,magnetic tape, or any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, any other opticalmedium, punchcards, papertape, any other physical medium with patternsof holes, a RAM, a PROM, an EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chipor cartridge, a carrier wave as described hereinafter, or any othermedium from which a computer can read instructions and/or code.

Various forms of machine-readable media may be involved in carrying oneor more sequences of one or more instructions to the processor(s) 1102for execution. Merely by way of example, the instructions may initiallybe carried on a magnetic disk and/or optical disc of a remote computer.A remote computer might load the instructions into its dynamic memoryand send the instructions as signals over a transmission medium to bereceived and/or executed by the computational system 1100. Thesesignals, which might be in the form of electromagnetic signals, acousticsignals, optical signals, and/or the like, are all examples of carrierwaves on which instructions can be encoded, in accordance with variousembodiments of the invention.

The communications subsystem 1114 (and/or components thereof) generallymay receive the signals, and the bus 1126 then may carry the signals(and/or the data, instructions, etc. carried by the signals) to theworking memory 1118, from which the processor(s) 1102 may retrieve andexecute the instructions. The instructions received by the workingmemory 1118 may optionally be stored on a storage device 1108 eitherbefore or after execution by the processor(s) 1102.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that substantialvariations may be made in accordance with specific requirements. Forexample, customized hardware might also be used, and/or particularelements might be implemented in hardware, software (including portablesoftware, such as applets, etc.), or both. Further, connection to othercomputing devices such as network input/output devices may be employed.

While the invention has been described with respect to exemplaryembodiments, one skilled in the art will recognize that numerousmodifications are possible. For example, the methods and processesdescribed herein may be implemented using hardware components, softwarecomponents, and/or any combination thereof. Further, while variousmethods and processes described herein may be described with respect toparticular structural and/or functional components for ease ofdescription, methods of the invention are not limited to any particularstructural and/or functional architecture but instead can be implementedon any suitable hardware, firmware, and/or software configuration.Similarly, while various functionality is ascribed to certain systemcomponents, unless the context dictates otherwise, this functionalitycan be distributed among various other system components in accordancewith different embodiments of the invention.

Moreover, while the procedures comprised in the methods and processesdescribed herein are described in a particular order for ease ofdescription, unless the context dictates otherwise, various proceduresmay be reordered, added, and/or omitted in accordance with variousembodiments of the invention. Moreover, the procedures described withrespect to one method or process may be incorporated within otherdescribed methods or processes; likewise, system components describedaccording to a particular structural architecture and/or with respect toone system may be organized in alternative structural architecturesand/or incorporated within other described systems. Hence, while variousembodiments are described with—or without—certain features for ease ofdescription and to illustrate exemplary features, the various componentsand/or features described herein with respect to a particular embodimentcan be substituted, added, and/or subtracted from among other describedembodiments, unless the context dictates otherwise. Consequently,although the invention has been described with respect to exemplaryembodiments, it will be appreciated that the invention is intended tocover all modifications and equivalents within the scope of thefollowing claims.

1. A method for providing an application level of service over a network, the method comprising: receiving network traffic at a network routing location controlled by a service provider, wherein the network traffic: originates from an application; comprises protocol data; and is configured to be sent over the network to an intended consumer, the intended consumer being a consumer of network resources provided by the service provider; deriving the application and the intended consumer from the network traffic as a function of the protocol data; determining whether an application service level relationship exists between the application and the intended consumer; and handling the network traffic at the network routing location as a function of the results of the determining step.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether an application service level relationship exists comprises determining whether the application is a registered application; and wherein handling the network traffic comprises routing the network traffic according to a default application level of service when the application is not a registered application.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether an application service level relationship exists comprises determining whether an application service level agreement exists between the application and the intended user; and wherein handling the network traffic comprises routing the network traffic according to the application service level agreement when the application service level agreement exists.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein handling the network traffic comprises routing the network traffic according to a service level agreement between the application provider and the network resources provider when the application service level agreement does not exist.
 5. The method of claim 3, wherein handling the network traffic comprises routing the network traffic according to a default application level of service when the application service level agreement does not exist.
 6. The method of claim 3, further comprising: when the application service level agreement does not exist: notifying the intended user that the application service level agreement does not exist; and prompting the intended user to enter a new application service level agreement with the application provider.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether an application service level relationship exists comprises determining whether the application is a restricted application; and wherein handling the network traffic comprises handling the network traffic according to a restricted application level of service when the application is a restricted application.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the restricted application level of service comprises inhibiting routing of the network traffic.
 9. The method of claim 7, further comprising: when the application provider is a restricted application: notifying the intended user that network traffic is being sent from a restricted application.
 10. The method of claim 9, further comprising: when the application is a restricted application: prompting the intended user to alter restrictions with respect to the application.
 11. The method of claim 1, further comprising: retrieving service level settings relating to the intended customer, wherein handling the network traffic at the network routing location is performed further as a function of the retrieved service level settings.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the service level settings comprise a set of bandwidth allocations for allocating bandwidth to the indented user by the network resources provider.
 13. The method of claim 11, wherein the service level settings are stored in a data storage device.
 14. The method of claim 11, wherein the service level settings are configured to be modified by an automatic configuration server.
 15. A method for providing an application level of service over a network, the method comprising: providing a list of registered applications to a user of network resources; receiving a request from the user to accommodate an application level of service for network traffic from a designated registered application; generating, if the request is proper, an application service level agreement based on the request between the user and the designated registered application; receiving network traffic from the network at a first network location; determining whether the network traffic is governed by the application service level agreement; and if the network traffic is governed by the application service level agreement: formulating application routing data as a function of the application service level agreement and an application service level protocol; and routing the network traffic over the network from the first network location to a second network location according to the application routing data.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein the application level of service relates to a bandwidth reservation.
 17. The method of claim 15, wherein the application level of service relates to at least one of quality of service, class of service, or terms of service.
 18. The method of claim 15, wherein the user of network resources comprises a consumer of network services.
 19. The method of claim 15, wherein the user of network resources comprises a network component.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the network component comprises at least one of a modem, a router, a residential gateway, or a network switch.
 21. The method of claim 15, further comprising: authenticating the user prior to the generating step.
 22. The method of claim 15, further comprising: auditing the request to determine whether the request is proper.
 23. The method of claim 22, wherein the auditing step comprises: receiving a set of network entitlements relating to the user; and determining whether the request is proper as a function of the set of network entitlements.
 24. The method of claim 22, wherein the auditing step comprises: receiving a set of network characteristics relating to the network; and determining whether the request is proper as a function of the set of network characteristics.
 25. The method of claim 15, further comprising: accessing service level settings relating to the user; and modifying the service level settings as a function of the application service level agreement.
 26. The method of claim 25, wherein the application routing data is further formulated as a function of the service level settings.
 27. The method of claim 15, further comprising: receiving a request for registration of an application from an application provider; determining whether to accept the request for registration; and adding the application to the list of registered applications when the request for registration is accepted.
 28. The method of claim 27, wherein: the network resources are provided by a network service provider; and the determining whether to accept the request for registration is performed by the network service provider.
 29. The method of claim 15, further comprising: receiving a request for registration of an application from the user; determining whether to accept the request for registration; and adding the application to the list of registered applications when the request for registration is accepted.
 30. The method of claim 29, wherein determining whether to accept the request for registration comprises prompting an application provider associated with the application to register the application.
 31. The method of claim 15, further comprising: receiving network traffic from an application, wherein the application is not a registered application; and notifying the user that network traffic was received from a non-registered application.
 32. The method of claim 15, further comprising: receiving network traffic from an application, wherein the application is a registered application and no application service level agreement has been generated between the application and the user; and notifying the user that network traffic was received from a registered application with which no application service level agreement has been generated.
 33. The method of claim 32, further comprising: prompting the user to request to accommodate an application level of service for network traffic from the registered application.
 34. The method of claim 15, further comprising: storing the application service level agreement in a data storage unit.
 35. A system for providing an application level of service over a network, the system comprising: a receiver unit, operable to receive network traffic from the network, wherein the network traffic originates from at least one of a set of registered applications and is destined for an intended user; and a network management unit, operable to: determine whether the network traffic is governed by an application service level relationship between the at least one registered application and the intended user; formulate application routing data as a function of the application service level relationship and an application service level protocol; and route the network traffic over the network at least partially as a function of the application routing data.
 36. The system of claim 35, further comprising: a data storage unit, operable to store service level settings, wherein a portion of the service level settings relate to application service level relationships between the intended user and at least a portion of the set of registered applications.
 37. The system of claim 35, further comprising: a remote configuration unit, operable to remotely configure a network component of the intended user as a function of the service level settings relating to the intended user.
 38. A datagram for providing an application level of service over a network, the datagram comprising: an application data portion, comprising a set of application data; and a routing data portion, wherein the routing data portion comprises a set of routing data comprising an application identifier and an intended user identifier, and wherein at least the routing data portion is configured as a function of an application service level protocol.
 39. The datagram of claim 38, further comprising: a header portion, wherein the header portion comprises the routing data portion.
 40. The datagram of claim 38, wherein the datagram is configured to be compatible with a standard network protocol.
 41. The datagram of claim 40, wherein the standard network protocol comprises a header portion and a data portion, and wherein the data portion comprises at least a portion of the datagram.
 42. The datagram of claim 38, wherein: the network is compatible with a network protocol, the network protocol being a different protocol from the application service level protocol; and the datagram is configured to be compatible with the network protocol and the application service level protocol. 